As a wedding planner myself, I am so excited to share details from my very own wedding! Inspired by Modern, Minimal and Romantic elements, with a touch of edgy details, surrounded by vineyards in St.Helena, up in Napa Valley, CA. The wedding was truly a dream come true, and such an honor to also have it featured on Style Me Pretty!

all photos by Ellie Koleen Photography

Each and every detail of our wedding day was carefully thought-out and held so much meaning to us. Starting with our Save the Dates, by Peach Paper TX, we had a vellum overlay with lyrics from one of our favorite songs, “Greatest Love Story” by Lanco, saying “The Greatest Love Story This World Has Ever Seen”. Then when it came time for our invitations, I customized our offerings via Minted, and also DIY’d our envelope liners, floral vellum enclosure, and envelope printing. Our invitation suite was a nod to what to expect on the wedding day, with a touch of our color palette and modern yet romantic elements. The vellum enclosure was kept together with a wax seal of a black rose, the same exact rose that I have tattooed on my wrist, in honor of my late Grandmother Rose. On our wedding day, Matt wore velvet loafer shoes with that same rose emblem on them as well. I also wanted to honor my other grandmother, Pearl, who was unable to travel to CA from NY for the wedding, so I wore Dolce Vita shoes with pearls all over them, and surprised Matt during our ceremony with a cape by Untamed Petals, that was covered in pearls, and made me feel like my Grandmother Pearl was hugging me the entire time.

It was so special for me to start my wedding day surrounded by my favorite people, and that included my incredibly talented hair and makeup artist, Marisa Perel. Marisa and I had met throughout our time in the industry, and that turned into a friendship that made it a no brainer for me to know she was the perfect person to help me and my girls feel beautiful on this day! Allie with Bloomwell & Co. truly knocked it out of the park with my bouquet. The moment I saw it, I burst into tears. It felt like Allie was able to go inside my mind, see exactly what I wanted it, and make it even better than I ever could have imagined. Having my dear friend create such beautiful magic for me on my wedding day was the biggest honor.

And of course, I had to have Bree and Irene of Eat Cake, Dance Often as my coordinators for my wedding. Bree and Irene had been freelancing for Bari Elexa Events for the past few years, and when I knew I had to hand over the control for my day, there were no 2 people I trusted more than them! It also was so calming having two people who I love so much be there to guide

We were so grateful to be surrounded by so many loved ones on our special day, and opted for a larger wedding party to really honor those closest to us, who have been part of our lives for so many important moments. We wanted our bridal party to be classic in all black, and really let the details of the day, the beauty of the surroundings, and the colors of the flowers pop.

It was so fun seeing each of my bridesmaids pick out their own dresses that reflected their own personal styles, and can easily be worn again for other future events.

Our ceremony was set amongst the vineyards, and as our guests arrived at Tre Posti in St.Helena, they were welcomed by a walkway lined with cypress trees, emenating the feeling of being in Tuscany, which was one of the reasons we picked our venue!

Having 1/2 of our crowd come from the East Coast, it was so special for us to show them the beauty of Napa Valley and all that we get to experience here on the West Coast.

Matt’s family friend, Don, officiated our wedding ceremony. Don previously officiated Matt’s father and step-mothers wedding, along with both Matt’s older brother’s weddings, so it was so meaningful to us that after being a part of Matt’s life throughout his years growing up, Don then go to play such a large role in our wedding day.

As a surprise, Matt read me his vows, followed by vows he wrote to me from the perspective of our dog, Saint, who Matt had before we met. I couldn’t hold back the tears, as it truly was so touching.

Cocktail hour was hosted in the garden which was stunning with so many different flowers in bloom! We named our signature cocktails “The Greatest” and “Love Story” after the same song from our Save the Dates, and had a special 3rd drink named “The Sainty” after our dog, which was a virgin shirley temple for our nieces and nephews to enjoy.

We brought in a lot of modern elements between our black and rattan chairs from Theoni Collection, to the black velvet linens from BBJ La Tavola, our lounge vignette from Encore Event Rentals, and of course our signage and seating chart by Shimmer and Stain. Guests were able to find their names, with the greeting “Welcome to The Good Life”, which was also our grand entrance song! If you didn’t guess yet, music has played a huge role in our relationship, and we loved tying these special songs into the details of the day itself!

Gardenias floated in the fountain giving off a beautiful fragrance, and the champagne was flowing as everyone enjoyed themselves in the gorgeous weather we were lucky to have.

Our al fresco dinner was inspired by a modern and bold, black and white concept, filled with romantic florals, candlelit ambiance, and delicious Italian food. I’m so grateful to all of the vendor partners who made my vision a reality, Encore Event Rentals, Bright Event Rentals, Theoni Collection and BBJ La Tavola. It was so fun designing my tablescape with so many vendors who I’ve worked with throughout the years! The details all came together with the romantic and lush floral arrangements and modern paper goods.

Tre Posti’s in-house catering team worked with us on customizing our menu, so we could serve our guests an elevated replica of our favorite date night Italian food – filled with caesar and caprese salads, pesto gnocchi, chicken parmesan, steak, and more.

We created an epic cake display with not one, not two, but three cakes by Natty Cakes, and we loved the fun floral moment created here to really make our main cake stand out. We had 4 different cake flavors, including a GF/DF option for our guests to indulge in.

Our reception then moved indoors for dancing, with DJ Sami and DJ Allison from Heart of Gold spinning tunes late into the evening! We had a super fun dessert display by Shimmer and Stain filled with our favorite treats from Sift Dessert bar, and another one of my favorite song lyrics, from a Dave Matthews Band song, “Sweet like candy to my soul, sweet you rock and sweet you roll”.

It truly was a dream come true seeing every detail come together, celebrating with our closest loved ones, and marrying the man of my dreams! And now, being on the other side of it, I have a whole new perspective on what it’s like for the couple when planning their very own wedding!